Today’s Book Blogger Hop question is: Do you read hardcovers with the dust jacket on or off? Why or why not?
I feel like this question comes up for me on a strangely rare basis…but maybe it isn’t strange! Most of my books come from the library, and if they’re hardback, they’re all taped and laminated and…well, those dust jackets are not coming off easily. Of my own books, I mostly buy paperback so–no dust jacket. Or I buy very old hardcovers that either never had a dust jacket or don’t anymore (and I tend to like how those look without jackets anyway).
If I buy a hardcover with a dust jacket I usually leave it on–because otherwise, what would I do with it? I have no need for added clutter! I will make an exception, however, if I really hate a cover image. I recover paperbacks if I don’t like the cover, and I have at least one hardback that came with a since-discarded dust jacket. I didn’t like the cover image, and it looks much better without it!
Do you prefer not to have dust jackets on your hardbacks when you read, or do you just leave them where they are?
It’s never occurred to me to remove a dust cover on a hardback! Mostly I like them, although with very big books the cover can get in the way somewhat. The flaps make useful bookmarks. Then again, virtually the only hardcovers I have are non-fiction. The exceptions are the last four Harry Potters and about four other fiction books, one of which is a first edition signed by the author.
I really don’t know why fiction editions come out in hardback first. It’s a pain.
Paperback is cheaper, but hardcover seems to last longer. I try to get hardcover when I can, but any paperback I get now gets immediately laminated. If it has a dust jacket and I have the ability to take it off, I take it off when I’m reading the book in order to prevent wear and tear of the dust jacket (cuz those things aren’t very durable). When I’m done reading, I put it back on before putting the book on my shelf.
I leave the dust jacket on. I think it protects the book, both from dust and from the effects of sunlight that can fade the spine.
It’s funny because I hate when my books with hard cover become dusty. I think a dust jacket is useful that way you help keep them as new as possible. Never really thought about it before but I think It would be good to start investing in some. My pet peeve is when the pages of the book start to wear and tear.